Cardiac auscultatory training among third year medical students during their medicine clerkship

Abstract

BackgroundComputer-aided instruction is becoming more popular as time available to teach physical examination has decreased. We tested whether a single intensive computer assisted cardiac auscultation training session for third-year medical students would improve their cardiac auscultatory skills. Methods30 students identified cardiac sounds selected from a commercially available CD-ROM. A teaching session immediately followed, and the students were retested after two weeks. Students rated their confidence in cardiac auscultation both at the beginning and the end of the study. ResultsMedian scores increased from 50% to 75% (P<.001). Ability to identify diastolic murmurs, systolic murmurs, and extra heart sounds initially and after two weeks were 0% and 50% (P=.004), 67% and 67% (P=.139), and 33% and 67% (P<.001), respectively. Confidence in auscultatory skills significantly increased (P<.001). ConclusionA single computer-assisted cardiac auscultation teaching session was associated with short-term improvement in both third-year medical students' ability to identify cardiac physical exam findings and in their confidence in performing cardiac auscultation.